You are cordially invited to two Evergreen webinars, “Introducing Craftsman,” 3/4/09, and “Understanding Open Source,” 3/18/09, both at 10 a.m. ET. These webinars are free (as in no cost!) and will be recorded so those not in attendance can view them later on. Your webinar hosts are Karen Schneider, Equinox Community Librarian, and Jason Etheridge, Evergreen developer.

Introducing Craftsman: this is a quick walk-through of Craftsman, the new, optional (and exceptionally good-looking) OPAC skin for Evergreen.

The Craftsman webinar is at 10 a.m. Wednesday, March 4, Eastern Time. The actual demo should last just under half an hour. Following a demo of Craftsman, Karen Schneider and Jason Etheridge of Equinox Software will field questions.

Understanding Open Source: this is a good webinar both for newcomers to open source and for long-time advocates looking for the right “elevator talk” to help others understand OSS.

This webinar will answer the most commonly-asked questions about open source software, such as…

* What does “free” mean?
* Why are libraries using open source software?
* What kind of open source software is available for libraries?
* Do we have to maintain it ourselves? (Quick spoiler: no.)
* What are the characteristics of good open source software?
* What are some easy ways to learn more about open source software?

Webinar tips: when you log in, your microphone will be muted by default. Up to 25 people can be unmuted at any one time. If you aren’t speaking, and are taking notes, you might want to mute your mike… if you are noisy, the host may mute you anyway. 🙂 The webinar software may tell you “space is limited.” Not true — we can host up to 1000 attendees. Still, sign up early as possible so we have a head count.

Thanks to Georgia Public Library Service for funding Craftsman’s development! The Craftsman design is by Inward Solutions.